An extraordinary true story of grace, mercy, and the redemptive power of God When her father was murdered, Laurie Coombs and her family sought justice—and found it. Yet, despite the swift punishment of the killer, Laurie found herself increasingly full of pain, bitterness, and anger she couldn’t control. It was the call to love and forgive her father’s murderer that set her, the murderer, and several other inmates on the journey that would truly change their lives forever. This compelling story of transformation will touch the deepest wounds and show how God can redeem what seems unredeemable.

Examines four key ways that writers of the Hebrew Bible conceptualize and critique acts of violence.

n many Christian circles this may be a taboo subject-spoken of in hushed tones or behind closed doors. But it is a very real problem that must be brought into the light of Scripture. Abuse in the church takes different forms, but it is alive and active even in "nice" families in our churches. Typically, the abuser is male, usually a husband--and his character is that of a manipulating deceiver! Countless women and children even many faithful pastors--have been abused by these deceivers. Have you, or someone you know, been a victim? Has an abuser: Threatened physical violence if he does not get away? Intimidated you with abusive language? Denied you affection? Denied you medical attention? Manipulated friends and acquaintances in order to gain allies? Pastor Jeff Crippen uses his over thirty years of experience to rip the lid off this most insidious behavior that is often hidden in plain sight. He not only maintains that Bible believing churches have ignored or failed to face the problem, he insists that when they do counsel a victim of abuse, they get it all wrong! The result is that the victim gets pulled into deeper-even life threatening-danger! This book will come as a life-saver in a raging sea for those under the thumb of an abusive spouse of "friend". The Lord Jesus Christ wants you to be free in him: spiritually, emotionally, and, yes, physically. Every pastor also needs to read this book, either because they too have been a victim, but, more importantly, so that they properly counsel those caught in a cycle of abuse.

'In my end is my beginning', wrote T. S. Eliot at the close of his poem East Coker, and that line gave me the title for this book. With it I should like to express the power of the Christian hope, for Christian hope is the power of resurrection from life's failures and defeats. It is the power of the rebirth of life out of the shadows of death. It is the power for the new beginning at the place where guilt has made life impossible. From the Introduction by Jurgen Moltmann In this short doctrine of hope, Jurgen Moltmann examines the personal experiences in life, in which the future is awaited, times when we search for new beginnings and find them. In three parts that correspond to the three beginnings in life: birth, rebirth and resurrection, Moltmann extols the true value of Christian hope that powers new beginnings. Jurgen Moltmann is Emeritus Professor of Systematic Theology at the University of Tubingen, Germany. He is the author of a number of books published by SCM Press, including Theology of Hope, The Crucified God and The Church in the Power of the Spirit.

Brings together the words of welfare mothers, activists and advocates, as well as scholars in a poignant and powerful challenge to the impoverishment of women.

A compelling view of two competing religious visions---one of "creation" and the other of "empire"---that run throughout the Bible. "A remarkable offering for those who care about the interface of power and faith with all the threats and seductions that go with it. . . As I read, I felt overwhelmed, both by the mass of data and by the cunning of interpretation. I could not put it down, and expect to continue to be instructed by it.---Walter Brueggemann "Howard-Brook undertakes what few dare anymore: an introductory primer for the whole Bible...This book invites disciples to `connect the dots', in order to recover our ancient, anti-imperial identity, and to embrace a radical faith and practice that are personal and politica."---Ched Myers "Howard-Brook illuminates how ancient empires exercised control and manipulation of people not simply by political and military means, but also through the religion of empire. Throughout he makes clear that the core message of the God of creation is to call people out of empire, to refuse to cooperate with the forces of destruction and domination today."---Richard Horsley "Will become a classic for communities that seek first to receive the gracious gift of God's alternative future to Empire."---Jarrod McKenna "If we who sojourn in America are to be a community that can both name and resist the lure of Empire, we need a story more powerful than the story called America. Wes Howard-Brook knows than the Bible tells such a story. May its story be ours as we're set free from our imperial imaginations to dream with our Creator of a new world here and now."---Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove